“Evan, look at me,” I ordered in a stern voice. He listened, although I could tell that his focus was not on me. “I am going to help you up and get you cleaned up.”
Machine nodded his head, still looking with his eyes unfocused. As I helped lift my best friend up, he began to sway on shaky legs. I looped an arm around his waist and moved one of his arms around my shoulders. Slowly we made it to the primary bedroom’s en suite bathroom.
Machine sat on the toilet. “Jessica…” He spoke so quietly I almost thought I misheard him.
I grabbed the first-aid kit from under the sink and looked at him. “Who—" Before I could finish my sentence, he looked up at me with more focus and resilience than I’d seen so far.
“Badger. I need her,” he elaborated.
My brows knitted together. “Like Evelyn’s Badger?”
Badger showed up forty-five minutes later with an empathetic expression. She placed her purse on the counter and sat down on the floor as Lucy greeted her with kisses and butt wiggles. Shock must have been evident on my face because Badger burst out laughing. “What?” she asked with a smile.
“I’ve never seen her act that excited to see someone other than Machine or myself.”
“Lucy is my girl. Aren’t you, princess?” she cooed. “Now I need to find out what your dad has gotten himself into this time.” Badger stood up and wiped the fur off of her yoga pants.
I knew Badger and Machine had become friendly, however, based on Lucy’s reaction, it was clear they had been hanging out more than I knew.
I left Machine in the Badger’s strong hands as I went back to my penthouse to change. As I changed into clean clothes, I received a text from Lennie.
Lennie:
Found out who was messing with our system.
Me:
Who?
Lennie:
Evelyn’s brother. You need to come in.
I looked at the message several times before cursing and heading to the office,not allowing myself to overthink about the first time I would be facing Evelyn since breaking things off.
SIXTY-FOUR
KADE
I walked into the Hive with my head held high. Regardless of the status of my relationship with Evelyn, we were dealing with a major security risk that needed to be dealt with.
The team sat in the lounge area of the Hive. Sitting in my usual plush armchair, I rested my forearms on my knees. My body buzzed with energy at its close proximity to Evelyn. I tried to keep my eyes focused on the team, however, I quickly realized I was losing the battle.
Evelyn looked more casual than she used to when she was undercover at RSS. Her brown hair was pulled up in a high ponytail, and she wore an oversized cream-colored sweater, dark skinny jeans, and penguin-printed Snoozie slippers. Regardless, she looked more beautiful than ever, and I wanted nothing more than to wrap her in my arms and tell her I made a mistake.
The need to comfort and protect reared its ugly head. Instead, I dismissed my desire and couldn’t help but think about how easy it was for Stefanos to threaten the ones Iloved and cared about. Seeing her made me think about my interaction with Stefanos several weeks prior. Although it went in my favor, I continued to keep my distance. It wasn’t worth the risk, I told myself as I replayed the scene in my mind for the thousandth time.
I leaned on my black SUV with three of my men. Bodhi, my third in command, stood next to me as we waited for Stefanos to show.
A sleek blue Lamborghini rolled up onto the deserted street. Stefanos got out of the car with an arrogant swagger. He wore a gray suit and aviator glasses dangling from his dress shirt. His dark eyes met mine. Normally we would have no issues, but this time was different. He’d threatened what wasmineand hurt my best friend!
“Ghost, it’s so good to see you!” He adjusted his lapels to his fitted suit. “Tell me, how is Machine doing?”
I gritted my teeth and clenched my fists so hard I thought I might break something. Eric, who stood next to me, lurched forward before reconsidering.
Stefanos raised an eyebrow at me. “Testy subject, I see.”
“I want this over with,” I growled out.
